On The Eve of the First Day after Christmas Break

So on Friday, the Feast of the Epiphany, the Three Magi safely made it to the fireplace mantle to deliver their gifts to the Baby Jesus, Miss Elizabeth found the quarter in her piece of the Galette des Rois, and just for good measure an ice storm topped off with a dusting of snow passed through.  But with all of that, Christmas break has ended.

 

 

 

Our Christmas break has been a delightful couple of weeks of gifting, and feasting, and reading, and friends, and crafting, and movies, and staying up late, and sleeping in, and playing in pajamas well into the morning and occasionally past lunchtime.

 

 

But tomorrow, things need to go back to 'normal'.  We will begin school again, picking back up the last few weeks of the term before exams and starting fresh with a new pile of books.  On Tuesday, the children resume their swimming lessons and choir practices, and on Wednesday we will meet with friends again for co-op.  We're not easing back in, we're diving back in.  

 

On the one hand, we're ready for it.   After two+ solid weeks off, preceded by the flu and a slow limp to the finish line, it feels like it's been a long time since we've had a day in which we followed a normal routine.   The crankiness that is creeping in around the edges is telling me it's time to reclaim it.  On the other hand, I feel overwhelmed by the thought of trying to get that ball rolling again.  Inertia.  An object at rest wants to stay at rest….   Oh how I want to stay at rest.  Sloth is a vice I wrestle with every.single.day.   I need a little something to kick-start me back into action, to help me to gladly go forth and resume the work He has given me to do.

 

Maybe I'm not the only one?  I suspect perhaps that I am not.   I can't offer you a package bundle of resources and checklists that guarantee to help you start the New Year with a bang.  I can't even offer you a blogpost in which I attempt to weave these wise words I have gleaned from others into a coherent whole.  That said, these are a few of the words that have been feeding my soul and strengthening my heart and helping me combat my propensity toward sloth this week as I prepare to shift gears and begin "normal" life again after the slower rhythm of these past weeks.

 

"…the real problem of Christian life comes where people do not usually look for it.  It comes that very moment you wake up each morning.  All your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals.  And the first job each morning consists simply in shoving them all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, stronger, quieter life come flowing in.  And so on, all day."  (Pt. 4, Ch. 8)

 

"Every time you fall He will pick you up again.  And he knows perfectly well that your own efforts are never going to bring you anywhere near perfection."  (Pt. 4, Ch, 9)

 

~CS Lewis, Mere Christianity

 

 

"MIDWINTER.  The commonest simile in connection with the new year is a book with blank pages.  Nature's year is also a book to be written.  This midwintertime represents a pause in the turning wheel of life.  It is, in northern lands, the year's low point, its nadir.  Life will swell, reach its zenith, before the next resting time. All the events of spring and summer and autumn, of sprouting and growth and seed time, the beginning and the end, lie ahead.  The whole circle of the seasons stretches away before us as we view the year from the cold plateau of January." (p.2)

 

~Edwin Way Teale, Circle of the Seasons

 

 

"Care is not passive – the word derives from an Indo-European word meaning 'to cry out', as in a lament. Care asserts that as difficult and painful as life can be, it is worth something to be in the present, alive, doing one's daily bit…combating sloth, being willing to care for oneself and others on a daily basis, is no small part of what constitutes basic human sanity, a faith in the everyday." (p.41-42)

 

~Kathleen Norris, The Quotidian Mysteries

 

 

A new year with all its possibility spreads out before me.  Tomorrow morning I will get up.  I will push back the voices that will whisper that it's just too hard, pray this prayer, and trust in His grace and goodness and strength to do my 'daily bit'.   Who's with me?

I Give You Permission...

Has spring arrived where you live yet?

 

 

It has where we live.  Sunny and temps in the 70s.  In my mind this is perfect weather. 

 

 

Too perfect to stay inside.

 

 

But what about that math lesson?  Don't we need to do that?

 

 

What about squeezing all that reading on the AO list for week 8 into week 8 on the calendar?  

 

 

Relax Mama.  I know you want to be diligent in your children's education.  Me too.

 

 

But pushing too hard at all those things you "should" do without ever taking a break – that leads to burn out.

 

 

Ask me how I know.

 

 

These sunny 70 degree days aren't going to last forever.

 

 

Before you know it they will give way to the sticky humidity and heat of summer.

 

 

We won't want to spend all day outside anymore.  We'll want to stay inside in the air conditioning.

 

 

Which means that we'll have time to pick up the pace again on the math and reading and all those other things.

 

 

We'll be refreshed and ready for it after slowing our pace for a few weeks to enjoy this window of perfect weather.

 

 

Sounds like a win-win situation to me.

 

 

Enjoy these days while they last.

 

 

I give you permission….

 

All photos taken on a recent outing to our local botanical gardens.  We got a great deal on an annual pass.  We'll be back.

 

 

Summertime Plans and Ponderings...

So, we are actually on a summer break.  I don't know if we've ever taken a really-truly-proper summer break.  We've always been 'take off a week or two here and there' type of homeschoolers.  Taking a good six weeks off all at once….I don't think we've ever done that.

 

Why now?  Well, we had planned to be travelling all summer, so I had organized our school terms out accordingly since I'm not interested in trying to homeschool on the road.   Now we aren't going to be travelling apart from a couple of weeks to visit my in-laws at the end of July.   I didn't feel like tweaking the plans I had already made, however.  So a six-week summer break it is.    And quite honestly, the lack of regular routine aside, I'm relieved.  I love homeschooling.  Overall it has been a really fantastic, wonderful thing for our family.  At the same time I am really glad to have some time to come to a full stop for a while, to just enjoy being together as a family and doing things when and how we feel like doing them (rather than because the schedule says so), and to take time to reflect on the past few years – where we've been as a family, where we want to go as a family, and what we need to do to get there.             

 

This article on a Charlotte Mason style summer plan has been circulating lately and it gave me a good framework to think through how I want to use these precious weeks off this summer.  Here are some of my plans, inspired by that article:

 

Mother Culture:

I'm definitely planning to read this summer, although quite honestly most of my current reading is of the lighter variety.  I'm trying out Elizabeth Goudge on the recommendation of some AO friends, and have a couple of other lighter-but-not-twaddly novels on order thanks to their suggestions.   I'm not up for another Dickens or finally tackling a Russian author this summer. :P  I will hopefully finish up Beowulf and How to Read a Book – both books I'm discussing with some ladies on the AO Forum.   I'm re-reading  When Children Love to Learn (more on that in a minute).  I'm also trying to be intentional to carve out time for daily Bible study and spiritual reading every day – my soul is very much in need of refreshment so this is a top priority.

 

I am also planning to take advantage of my husband being around this summer to sneak out to a coffee shop once or twice a week to write.  I can't do this in Africa and I had almost forgotten that it was possible.   This is definitely an exciting development.

 

I'm also hoping to spend time in some crafty pursuits, both for myself and with the children.  Michelle and I have been crocheting together.  Littlest one is itching to do some sewing, and I have been wanting to try to learn some new embroidery stitches so I may sit down and do some of that with her.  We also recently bought the Artistic Pursuits Elementary 4-5 curriculum which focuses on drawing techniques – Michelle and I have enjoyed the first couple of lessons and the little ones have joined in some too – even Papa is intrigued and may join us next time we pull it out.  James is enjoying various hands-on fix-it jobs with his Papa.

 

We are hoping to plug in to a good local church where we are living for the year – we visited one last week that is very promising – my soul is need of corporate worship, good teaching  and fellowship (in English!!).  And I am also excited that I will be able to attend two different Ambleside Online Retreats later this summer and meet in person many of the ladies that have been my online homeschooling support network these past couple of years.  (I will be in Indiana and at a smaller retreat in the Texas Hill Country…will I see you?)

 

Nature and Outdoor Time:

This one has been a little tricky because it has been pushing 100 for the past week or so where we are.  We are from Africa.  It gets hot in Africa.  It doesn't get THIS hot in Africa (at least not the part where we lived).  Yeesh.  It's put a bit of a damper on our plans to try out some of the parks and nature trails in this new-to-us area, although as soon at the temperature dips a bit, we will.  In the meantime, we are at least trying to take a walk around our neighborhood in the evening when the heat isn't quite so intense.  We also  just got a season pass for our local pool which is only a 5 minute walk from our apartment – we'll be there often.  We've procured bikes for the children, and as soon as my husband can get a hold of one for himself he will probably start taking the older two out on bike rides a little farther afield than our parking lot. J   There is apparently a nature museum and a hands-on science museum in the nearby 'big city', so we may visit those on some of those too-hot-to-spend-much-time-outside days.

 

Take a Good Look:

I'm really good at making schedules and other practical plans for our homeschool.  I love making neat-and-tidy charts and checklists and organizing new books.  However, in the craziness of our life over the past few years, it's been a long time since I've considered matters such as atmosphere, relationships, and habits.   I'm re-reading When Children Love to Learn as a guide to help me contemplate these principles, and I'm determined to put off any further practical planning until I've had some good time to think and pray through these more foundational issues.   I'm also teaching in a co-op setting in the fall for the first time, so I also want to consider how to put those principles to work in a group setting.   I'm sure I'll be processing some of those thoughts in this space.  Stay tuned.

 

Masterly Inactivity:

And yes, we will be practicing masterly inactivity as well – unstructured time for personal pursuits.  My oldest has built – and is continuing to add to – a "Borrower House" in a corner of the living room.  James is spending lots of time with Legos – his room has become his Lego-Man-Cave (are 7 year olds enough to have a man-cave?  Well, he does anyway.)  Now if only I could convince my littlest one that masterly inactivity was a good idea….

 

What are you planning to do this summer?                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

Masterly Inactivity: How Can We Live It?

Thoughts on School Education: Chapter 3 "Masterly Inactivity" – Part 2

 

Last week, we defined what is meant by Charlotte Mason's term "masterly inactivity".  Today let's talk about how  we can reach this serenity of attitude – this 'state of rest' as Andrew Kern would put it – so that we can practice Masterly Inactivity in our homes.  Charlotte offers a few suggestions towards this end:

 

First of all, Charlotte encourages mothers to 'play' from time to time: "If mothers would learn to do for themselves what they do for their children when these are overdone, we should have happier households.  Let the mother go out to play!  If she would only have courage to let everything go when life becomes to tense, and just take a day, or half-a-day, but in the fields, or with a favorite book, or in a picture gallery looking long and well at just two or three pictures, or in bed without the children life would go on far more happily for both children and parents" (p.33-34).

I know, it does sound like a bit of a pipe dream, doesn't it?  In my particular life situation, I don't have a lot of opportunities to get out and away from my children, and yet I do see the difference that it makes when I can.  My ideal is to take a half a day at a coffee shop to read and think and journal, or to take a long walk in some peaceful place – but I can't do either of those in our current city.  What I have been able to manage is daily quiet rest time – in which we all go into our separate spaces and relax with a book or take a nap, mama included.  I also stop whatever tasks I am doing in the late afternoon early enough to be able to take 45 minutes or so with a cup of coffee and a book that nourishes my soul and mind before I need to start dinner.  My children are often playing outside at this time of day, weather permitting, so I join them with a chair on the front porch. Occasionally my husband will take the children out or find projects that he can include them in on the weekends so that I can have some quiet time alone at the house to read or write.  We are sadly lacking in places where one can take long peaceful walks in our city, but we soak that kind of thing up when we are able to get out of town for a while.  An occasional ladies' night out can be refreshing too, although in a different way.  What can you do to get some occasional refreshment for yourself?  It's worth a think, even if it means thinking outside the box.

 

Charlotte also encourages us to try and have a 'state of leisure' in our homes as far as possible.  The ideal is to try and avoid being rushed, busy, and stressed.  Busy seasons lead to greater 'fractiousness' in the home.  "Leisure for themselves and a sense of leisure in those about them is as necessary to a child's well-being as it is to the strong and benign parental well-being" (p.35).

 

This is a tough one in today's world, isn't it?  There's almost a societal expectation that we make ourselves busy, with the accompanying guilt trip  if we're not.   I will confess that I probably have an easier time of keeping our day-to-day schedule leisurely simply because I live in Africa and don't have the myriad of activity choices that are available elsewhere.   We still have busy seasons, though, especially around conference and co-op sessions…and I do notice the increased "fractiousness" in our home during those times.  It always makes me glad these are temporary seasons in our family life and not our normal state of life!  It is worthwhile to consider all the activities that we are involved in and all the running around we do.  Is it possible to combine our errands into fewer trips?  Can we evaluate the true value of our activities and cut some of them out?   Cindy Rollins has some words of  wisdom on this subject matter here. "Stress," she reminds us, "is the enemy of just about everything worthwhile."

 

Ultimately, though, and perhaps most importantly of all, Charlotte reminds us that masterly inactivity is the outworking of our faith in God and our rest in Him: "The highest form of confidence, known to us as faith, is necessary to full repose of mind and manner.  When we recognize that God does not make over the bringing up of children absolutely even up to their parents, but that He works Himself, in ways which it must be our care not to hinder, in the training of every child, then we shall learn passiveness, humble and wise.  We shall give children space to develop on the lines of their own characters in all the right ways, and shall know how to intervene effectually to prevent those errors which, also, are proper to their individual characters" (p.35).

 

Masterly inactivity is really all about REST – teaching and parenting and living from a state of rest, trusting that God will lead and guide us – when to act, when to let things go - and trusting our children are ultimately in His care.  Our role is to plant the seeds, He brings forth the fruit.

 

The message of masterly inactivity dovetails so nicely with my contemplations on rest over the past month or two.  I highly recommend Sarah's new ebook and audio companion Teaching from Rest: A Homeschooler's Guide to Unshakeable Peace if you need some practical encouragement in this regard.  At the very least, you can listen to interview she did with Andrew Kern as part of the audio companion for free at the Circe Institute website. 

 

In what practical ways have you striven to live out the principle of masterly inactivity in your living, parenting, and teaching?

 

 

 

 

Where I've Been...

Well, I've been here…

 

Doing a lot of this…

 

And this….

 

And a bit of this too.

 

Spending time with these lovely people…

 

 

 

Celebrating this little guy (6 years old now!)….

 

…and digging in to Ambleside Online Year 2, Term 2 (we will go 6 more weeks before taking a month-long summer break).

 

 

Life is slowly returning to a normal routine, and I have lots of thoughts simmering that I am looking forward to sharing with you all soon. J  In the meantime, I have a guest post up over at Afterthoughts this week, for those of you who may not have seen it yet.

What have you been doing these past few weeks?